Ode to Our State Bird

Crispy fried lemongrass quail with heirloom tomatoes, silken tofu and young black pepper, courtesy of chef Mark Malicki.

It's okay to be jealous.

End of Summer Treats

Behold a sassy jalapeño margarita, padrone peppers with pancetta, and an heirloom tomato salad with figs, arugula and feta. Thanks, Healdsburg Bar and Grill!

What are your favorite foods to eat during Indian summer?

Jucy Lucys

And what exactly is a Jucy Lucy? I'm glad you asked.

It's probably one of the most genius burgers I've encountered in a long time, a specialty of the Twin Cities.

 At Matt's Bar in Minneapolis, hundreds if not thousands of these juicy gems get churned out from a griddle the width of a kitchen sink. Two patties are sealed together around some kind of amazing cheese mixture that melts into a glorious liquid once it's grilled. (The "i" is deliberately omitted, since the veteran employee who posted the sign back in 1950 wasn't the greatest speller, if not in a huge hurry to get back to the griddle.

 Here, my friend's husband dresses his Lucy with the biggest helping of ketchup I've ever seen.

 Mitch enjoys her first, if not slightly painful bite. By the way, we were amazed to immediately get a table, since there's usually a line out the door for these babies.

 I approach mine gingerly so I don't destroy the roof of my mouth. The element of surprise is akin to Chicken Kiev, but it's best to anticipate it so no one gets hurt.

 An interior view of the splendor, adorned with pickles and grilled onions.

 Matt's has a friendly feud with another joint who also claims to have the best Lucy. Mitch is confident that Matt's is the champion.

 I found a recipe for it here, and will definitely be trying to recreate this Midwestern masterpiece when I return home.

Happiest gals in the Midwest? You betcha.

Cider Speakeasy

It's not often that I get to find the super secret drinking spots in the area, but sometimes you're with the right person with the intel. Unfortunately, no names or photos, since my big mouth and I don't want to be the ones to spoil it. But I still have to share in the excitement.

The evening started with dinner at Barley and Hops, where I enjoyed the lovely Le Merle, a Belgian style with tropical fruit notes. Not my usual pick, but I thought I'd go out of the box a bit from my favorite Death and Taxes, which will one day have a post all of its own.

Next was ice skating, and with no falls! I want to say I'm improving on my technique, but I still seem to prioritize going fast over looking graceful. Is it weird that I found satisfaction in skating faster than all the little kids there? Or just a sign that I'm ridiculously competitive?

On to the speakeasy. This secret spot is by invite only, and involves knowing the top secret code to a gated entry (which I hope I never learn because I would immediately shout it from the rooftops so all my friends could go). I was lucky enough to be in the company of one of the invited friends, so we rolled in for a pint as things were winding down.

The owner let us in, poured us some ciders and we chatted with his buddies beside a charming backdrop of fermenting tanks. Ever notice how the problems of the world manage to easily be solved over a few pints? We sat in a heated tent under the stars, debating if we should play Boggle, pool or backgammon. We chose stars.

Anyone who knows me knows I'm not fancy, and I'm the last person in the world to keep secrets. But for one night, it was nice to do both.

Happy New Year!

Happy new year! I hope everyone had a safe and fun evening last night, and that you are as excited for 2012 as I am. I'm ready for lots of great stuff this year.

As for my night, I had a mellow evening at my local watering hole. I met a slew of locals I hadn't met during my brief foray at the coffee shop. I drank beer out of a can, played pool with some ranch folks, and told jokes with some crab fisherman. It was lively and pleasant, and it cleared out by 11 and we all went home. All in all, a perfect New Year's.

The highlight of my night was watching some of the old timers taking jello shots. We had to keep reminding them they aren't meant to be sipped. I put in a request for grape ones for my next big night out.

Any resolutions this year? I was going to do something practical like trying to be on time, but I really just want to be more kind this year. I want everything I do to be in kindness and try to draw it out in others.

How about yours? List in the comments!

Happy Halloween!

I'm a little late since I'm still recovering, but Happy Halloween!  I went out with my sister-in-law and her buddies, who kindly lent me a costume.

Thought I found my brother Superman, but realized he was actually Sloth from The Goonies.  Oh well.  At least there are lots of Superman fans out there.

Hope you had a great one!

Make Your Own Burger Tuesday

Life can throw you a few curveballs, but if you're lucky you can knock 'em out of the park.  When I ran out of food, the best was meeting up with friends at Stumptown Brewery.  The kitchen is closed on Tuesdays.  No!  You can grill your own burger instead.  Yes!

So that's what we did.  We also met some terrific people visiting from San Francisco.  Meeting energetic people at a bar is also nice because they usually have the most enthusiasm to do things.  We teamed up on the burgers and got our new friends to cook them all for us (actually, our new friend's boyfriend did most of the work).

Not bad for 2 bucks.

Has anyone come up with a restaurant concept to have customers do all the cooking?  Brilliant!  I think it could work.